I am trying to install linux on media player.

fbs3727

New Member
Joined
Feb 1, 2025
Messages
7
Reaction score
0
Credits
57
Hello.
I am trying to install Linux on my Popcorn Hour A110. If you ask why, the device has an Ethernet port and although it is connected to the internet, it cannot access the internet. Therefore, you can only watch something with a flash drive and an external DVD player. My goal is to install one of the Linux distros and use it as a mini PC. The processor on it seems to support Linux. I found something like this ( https://github.com/vaidyasr/nmtcsi ) but I couldn't figure out how to install it. I would be happy if you could help me.
 


I found something like this ( https://github.com/vaidyasr/nmtcsi ) but I couldn't figure out how to install it. I would be happy if you could help me.
That looks like a repository for installing plugins for some other application from what I can tell. Are you looking for something to play your video files on your MiniPC? If that is the case I I would recommend using Kodi.
 
That looks like a repository for installing plugins for some other application from what I can tell. Are you looking for something to play your video files on your MiniPC? If that is the case I I would recommend using Kodi.
No, I'm not looking for something like that. I'm trying to install Linux on my old media player and make the old device more usable.
 
as far as I can tell, that's a home networked media streamer released in 2008 (gadget site reviews are from that time period). I was able to find firmware for it, https://www.syabas.com, but I rather suspect that you wont be able to install anything else on it as it's not really a computer.
 
as far as I can tell, that's a home networked media streamer released in 2008 (gadget site reviews are from that time period). I was able to find firmware for it, https://www.syabas.com, but I rather suspect that you wont be able to install anything else on it as it's not really a computer.
I tried to update the version but there was no difference. As you said, what I want seems like a dream for now. If I can at least connect it to the internet, it will be great.
 
The presence of an Ethernet port doesn't always indicate internet capability. A number of various types of "box" have come with RJ-45s over the years.....and these ports are wired-up specifically for field engineers to plug their diagnostic tools into, in order to trouble-shoot where necessary.....

It's the same with routers. Here, we all know what the RJ-45s are for, but the presence of a USB port doesn't necessarily indicate that a NAS could be connected. Oft-times, said USB ports are slightly non-standard, and are intended for field engineer use.

Appearances CAN be deceptive..!


Mike. ;)
 
Also it is likely to be 32 bit at most
 
Most likely the onboard OS is burned into eprom and normally cannot be change unless you have a eprom flasher/programmer
The presence of an Ethernet port doesn't always indicate internet capability. A number of various types of "box" have come with RJ-45s over the years.....and these ports are wired-up specifically for field engineers to plug their diagnostic tools into, in order to trouble-shoot where necessary.....

It's the same with routers. Here, we all know what the RJ-45s are for, but the presence of a USB port doesn't necessarily indicate that a NAS could be connected. Oft-times, said USB ports are slightly non-standard, and are intended for field engineer use.

Appearances CAN be deceptive..!


Mike. ;)
The RJ45 port is really for connecting to the internet. The device is very old and is probably trying to connect to servers that no longer exist because support for it has been discontinued. Or, due to changing internet standards over time, drivers need to be updated. But it is not possible to update drivers on the device as it is.
 
Last edited:
Most likely the onboard OS is burned into eprom and normally cannot be change unless you have a eprom flasher/programmer
It is probably as you said. It is not possible to update the operating system without writing a new operating system to the EPROM. Most probably, when you try to do this, the device will not accept the new operating system.
 
Most likely the onboard OS is burned into eprom and normally cannot be change unless you have a eprom flasher/programmer

^THIS

It's possible that they just wrote it to memory and didn't burn the gate after that. That is unlikely. That is very unlikely.

You'd need to be highly technical to move forward with this. You may even need special tools like a JTAG writer and an oscilloscope.

Without the device being well-documented, you'd be on your own. If you had the schematics you'd have a better chance at it.

Also, it may already be running a form of Linux - but just a stripped down version used on embedded devices.

If it's a matter of money to buy a new computer, the used market is often a good place to start. Used hardware can be fairly inexpensive. Refurbished hardware can also be fairly inexpensive.
 
No, I'm not looking for something like that. I'm trying to install Linux on my old media player and make the old device more usable.
I think we are misunderstanding each other. What you posted didn't look like a media player and it didn't look like a Linux installation. So I shared a piece of software that you can run on Linux for playing your media once you have Linux installed on your old device.
 
^THIS

It's possible that they just wrote it to memory and didn't burn the gate after that. That is unlikely. That is very unlikely.

You'd need to be highly technical to move forward with this. You may even need special tools like a JTAG writer and an oscilloscope.

Without the device being well-documented, you'd be on your own. If you had the schematics you'd have a better chance at it.

Also, it may already be running a form of Linux - but just a stripped down version used on embedded devices.

If it's a matter of money to buy a new computer, the used market is often a good place to start. Used hardware can be fairly inexpensive. Refurbished hardware can also be fairly inexpensive.
Actually, I have an osiloscope, and it shouldn't be too hard to get a Jtag Writer, but I will definitely not replace the time and labor I am. Because of my father's job, I sometimes get similar devices. Sometimes 25, sometimes 10 years old things come. I throw some of them in the trash. Some are shredding to use it as spare parts. I'm trying to use those like that. This device will probably wait for the right time to gain a chance. (The right time will never come.) Thank you for your answer anyway :).
 
(The right time will never come.)

It is most probable that it is burned in. That means they wrote the data to EPROM and then sent a final signal to it. That signal burns out a very, very small fuse and makes it so that it can no longer be written to. It's such a small fuse that you can't replace it with micro-soldering or anything like that. (It's usually smaller than a single transistor.)

So, you might as well as recycle it.

Also, I certainly don't have time (nor do I have a volume of e-waste to get rid of) but there are people who break up the hardware to recover the gold that was on the contacts. It's tedious and I'd say that the results wouldn't even justify my time and effort - but people do it and seem content doing it. I'm sure it isn't their only income source.
 
I have a Saba DVD drive but I couldn't use it much because it only has a scart output, so for now I'll use this device to connect it to my old Samsung monitor (Sync Master 206nw) and watch my old movie archive.
 

Members online


Top